With the weather warming up and the season changing to summer, it only means one thing for the WTS-NC Triangle Chapter: time for our midyear review! This event is open to all members who are interested in learning more about the planning and organization that goes into all our great events. Please join us on the afternoon of July 8, when we will discuss the years' successes and how to build on them, and start planning for 2016. If you've ever wanted to get more involved in WTS, this is a great event at which to start. See below for more details.

 

As always, please check our  website for our upcoming events, and we hope to see you at the next event!

 

  Kimberly J. Levine
President, WTS NC Triangle Chapter
WTS Logo


June 2015
In This Issue
Quick Links
2015 Partners
Advocate Partners







Patron Partners









Supporter Partners





Chapter Officers

President

  Kim Levine

Hatch Mott MacDonald

 

Vice President

Jenny Fleming, PE

 Ecological Engineering  

 

Secretary

Memory Washaya

NCDOT 

 

Treasurer

Taruna Tayal

VHB
WTS International Partners
Strategic Partner

Trailblazer Partner





New Membership Incentive
This year, new  WTS members who fill out a membership form and pay the membership fee at a NC Triangle chapter event, such as a luncheon, breakfast or Transportation YOU event, will receive 15 percent off of their membership cost, as well as a WTS fleece. There are many benefits to being a member of WTS, so if you're thinking about joining, this is a great year to do it. Click here for more information on membership fees.
Upcoming Events
Midyear Review
Join the chapter members on July 8 to participate in the annual midyear review. Members discuss the years' events to determine what worked and what didn't, and they begin planning events for the next year. Open and free to all members, click below to register.
WTS International Conference
The NC Triangle chapter was recognized for achieving Gold Level status at the WTS International Conference in Chicago. Representing the chapter at the conference were (above, from left) Rachel Ruiz of HNTB, chapter Vice President Jenny Fleming of Ecological Engineering, and Nichette Hill of KCI. To read more about the chapter's Gold Level achievement, click here. Of attending the conference, Ruiz said, " [It] inspired me to continue to work hard to become the best engineer I can be and help other young women in the process."
In Case You Missed It...
Tri-Chapter Social

The three WTS chapters in North Carolina came together for the first-ever Tri-Chapter Social in Charlotte recently. The chapters represented were NC Triangle, Charlotte and the newest WTS chapter in the state, Western North Carolina, which was announced by WTS International as one of four new ratified chapters in its June newsletter. Click below to see more pictures from the event.
  Photos
June Breakfast

Tracey Gritz, productivity expert and owner of The Efficient Office, shared tips on how to accomplish more in less time at work at the June breakfast. She spoke about how to achieve a work/life balance, manage priorities and reclaim an hour every day to do what you love.
WTS In the News
Transportation Award Winner Recognized
NCDOT recognized its Office of Education Initiatives as the winner of this year's NC Triangle Chapter's Rosa Parks Diversity Award. The award was presented at May's Go Gala fundraiser, and NCDOT included the information in its NCDOT Now video for May 15. Watch the video above (the Office of Education Initiatives segment starts at the 2:43 mark).
Women in Transportation News
Read about Reiko Abe, a trailblazing female engineer from Japan, who had to overcome not only gender discrimination but also ancient superstitions to do the work she loves. She now oversees mass transit construction projects in India. Click the link below to read the full story.
Professional Connections
For members looking for networking opportunities within the Chapter, consider joining the Professional Connections program. Each quarter, the members of the program are split into groups of four or five, and each group plans a lunch meeting. This is a good way to meet others in WTS. For more information, or to sign up, contact  Karen Reynolds .
Featured Business

In order to better serve its transportation clients, specifically the NCDOT, Vaughn & Melton Consulting Engineers (V&M) opened a Raleigh office in 2014. V&M's Raleigh office is led by J. 

Victor Barbour, PE, a recent retiree from NCDOT with more than 33 years of transportation
experience. In 2015, Mr. Barbour was joined in the Raleigh office by transportation designers John Lansford, PE, and Keith Bridgers, both retirees from NCDOT. Mr. Lansford brings 30 years of roadway design experience and expertise in Microstation and Corridor Modeling.  Additionally, Mr. Bridgers brings 30 years of roadway design specialization.

 

In order to provide the NCDOT and other government entities with high quality Construction Engineering and Inspection (CEI) Services, V&M also hired Mr. Dwayne Alligood, PE, as its lead CEI Manager and Inspector for this part of the state. He brings over 30 years' experience gained while previously working for the NCDOT providing various management, maintenance, design, and operations services. In order to build V&M's CEI staff in the Eastern parts of the State, Mr. Alligood was recently joined by Rhonda Barnes and Peter Gartin. Ms. Barnes is a 30-year veteran of the CEI industry, and Mr. Gartin has 9 years of CEI experience.

  

V&M is very excited about the opportunities that its expansion into the Eastern Part of the State will provide to its clients. The company will be able to provide local expertise and even quicker response times. V&M also truly looks forward to building new relationships in the area!
Newsletter Editors: Leslie Tracey , PE, City of Durham DOT; Paddy Jordan , Hatch Mott McDonald; Yuying Zhou, VHB; Kara Peach, VHB